Ready for the World: Admissions at UC Hastings

UC Hastings’ location in the heart of San Francisco places students at the threshold of government, technology, and the Pacific Rim.

Within five blocks of campus are local, state and federal courts, San Francisco City Hall and administrative centers such as the Department of Public Health, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the IRS. UC Hastings is also just minutes away from the city’s tech epicenter, a plethora of NGOs and non-profits, and UCSF’s world-class educational, clinical, and research facilities. Whatever your focus or interest in the law, you’ll be able to plug into that world immediately, making connections and gaining the relevant experience you need to hit the ground running after graduation.

Legal education in the 21st century is changing, and UC Hastings is helping to shape that evolution. Concentrations such as East Asian Legal Studies and Social Justice Lawyering offer students the opportunity to take on the legal challenges of a changing global economy and international human rights. For those who want to help shape the future, UC Hastings is home to the Institute of Innovation Law and the Center for State and Local Government Law. These public interest academic centers are devoted to innovation through the practice and development of law and policy. With you every step of the way is a faculty comprised of successful scholars and legal practitioners. Many professors have written the casebooks used in their first year courses and all maintain an open-door policy that encourages strong mentoring relationships.

Our programs and faculty attract students from all over the world who are passionate, engaged, and ready to make their mark. In fact, many already have. Sitting next to you in class could be a practicing physician, a homeless-youth advocate, or even a former Olympian. All of our students have something special to offer the world. But just as important is what they have to offer each other. The prestige and success of our student body is relevant not because it creates a competitive environment, but because it sets the stage for more inspired and successful collaboration. These are your future connections and as a result, their success is your success.

Our alumni are a diverse group, but the one thing they all have in common is the experience of legal trailblazing and community building they had at UC Hastings. As a result, alumni are always ready to bring students into the fold, working with them as formal and informal mentors and even as future employers. More than 18,000 UC Hastings graduates practice law in almost every state in the nation and around the world. Thousands more are using their degrees to make an impact through groundbreaking work in fields that run the gamut from finance to technology. UC Hastings has produced outstanding public servants at every level of government service, and more judges than any other law school in California.

Our location, network of alumni, and dedication to legal innovation distinguishes us and opens doors for our students all over the world. Whether you want to work in a firm, government, education, tech, or the judiciary, this is the place where you’ll be prepared to make things happen. By integrating theory, doctrine, and experiential learning, our programs not only prepare students for their future careers, but also inspire them to discover newfound passions.

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University of California Hastings College of the Law in San Francisco is redefining legal education through our experiential, interdisciplinary, and international approach to the law. We integrate rigorous academics with hands-on practice, preparing our graduates to tackle the legal challenges—and leverage the opportunities—of the 21st century.